Drawings & Pastels

Drawing is a type of graphic art created with lines and areas of tone applied to paper usually with pencil, charcoal and coloured pencil, but a wash may also be applied.

They frequently serve as preparatory studies for other works, but are also considered works of art in their own right. A practitioner of drawing is known as a draughtsman.

Pastels are created using a stick made of pure pigment and a binder.

A key part of the general art market, both are also specialist collecting areas in their own right.


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Sickert strikes a Venetian portrait pose

27 August 2018

The setting for this near-monochrome self-portrait, below, by Walter Sickert (1860-1942) is the Campo SS Giovanni e Paolo in Venice and shows the equestrian statue of Bartolomeo Colleoni and the Scuola Grande di San Marco.

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'Hundred Acre Wood' map leads way to book illustration auction record

16 July 2018

The original drawing of the map of Winnie-the-Pooh’s 'Hundred Acre Wood' sold for £350,000 (plus 25/20/12% buyer’s premium) at Sotheby’s sale of English Literature, History, Science, Children’s Books and Illustration on July 9-10.

Willy Wonka

Record set for Sir Quentin Blake illustration as 40-year collection sells at auction

13 July 2018

Watercolours and drawings from the personal collection of artist Sir Quentin Blake (b. 1932) have been sold at Christie’s for over £750,000.

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Poignant wartime sketches by Artists Rifles member who was killed at Passchendaele

09 July 2018

It has been described as perhaps the most curious regiment in the British Army, but the well-known names associated with the Artists Rifles were certainly not obscure.

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Henry Moore’s hands grip bidders in Glasgow

02 July 2018

Like many artists, hands held a strong fascination for British sculptor Henry Moore (1898-1986), and he came back to the subject numerous times in his career.

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Case study: a trip to Paris with Giacometti

25 June 2018

No two jobs are the same for the art shippers offering a bespoke service at the top end.

Henri Matisse, Portrait of Mrs Hutchinson

Henri Matisse drawing of Bloomsbury hostess fetches £2.6m at Sotheby’s Impressionist and Modern art auction

20 June 2018

A charcoal portrait by Henri Matisse (1869-1954) of the writer and Bloomsbury hostess Mary Hutchinson was knocked down at £2.6m at Sotheby’s latest Impressionist & Modern Art evening sale in London.

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Well-known map featured on endpapers of Winnie-the-Pooh returns to auction after nearly 50 years

11 June 2018

It was in December 2014 that Sotheby’s put an estimate of £100,000-150,000 on what it called at the time “probably the most famous and evocative illustration of the 20th century”.

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Why good Manners count for Sim

04 June 2018

This drawing, below, of the celebrated Danish ballerina Ulla Poulsen is among the pieces on offer from Sim Fine Art’s online exhibition of works by Violet Manners, Duchess of Rutland (1856-1937).

Jean-Bernard Eschemann’s portrait of Marcel Proust

Works from Marcel Proust’s library raise over £650,000 at Sotheby’s auction

01 June 2018

An archive of manuscripts and books from the French novelist Marcel Proust’s library realised a premium-inclusive €750,000 (£657,895) at Sotheby’s in Paris.

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Nine different ways to bid for a Bateman

14 May 2018

What is your bidding technique? This Bateman cartoon on offer at John Nicholson’s on May 23 should strike a chord with ATG readers who remember the days before bidding paddles.

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World away from Lowry matchsticks

30 April 2018

Early works painted before an artist has adopted their signature style can make for intriguing viewing – especially if that artist is widely known.

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Multiple faces of the pastel portrait

23 April 2018

In this second part of ATG’s review of the various events held during Paris drawings week, we turn the spotlight onto one particular medium: the pastel portrait.

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Drawings week expands further

16 April 2018

Increasing number of auctions and shows around the Salon make Paris a must in March.

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5 Questions: Guy Peppiatt

02 April 2018

Guy Peppiatt specialises in 18th and 19th century British watercolours and drawings and is based in Mason’s Yard, St James’s.

LS Lowry drawings

Early LS Lowry drawings emerge at Kent auction

29 March 2018

A cache of early LS Lowry (1887-1976) drawings from a deceased estate in Cheshire is estimated to sell for a combined £150,000 at Bentleys Fine Art Auctioneers in Cranbrook, Kent.

Head of John the Baptist by Cesare da Sesto

Buyers pack the aisles at Salon du Dessin opening

23 March 2018

The Salon du Dessin opened this week for its 27th edition at the Palais Brongniart in the Bourse district of Paris. There was the usual mix of languages at this international event that draws collectors, dealers and curators to Paris from far afield to see what new discoveries the 39 exhibitors have bought to the specialist works on paper fair.

Peter Brookes pen ink and watercolour

Cartoon collection of Jeffrey Archer – aka ‘Creepycrawlus Irritatus’ – makes £570,000 at Sotheby’s

16 March 2018

Jeffrey Archer’s collection of political cartoons raised a total of £571,318 (including premium) at Sotheby’s as 240 original artworks went under the hammer this week.

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Paris drawings auctions: French 17th century works take centre stage

12 March 2018

Artcurial has a large number of works on paper as part of its March 21 auction of Old Master and 19th century paintings and drawings at its Paris rooms, accounting for around 40% of the 195 lots.

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Hessel collection among highlights at Christie’s

12 March 2018

Christie’s has two dedicated drawings sales, one devoted to Old Master and 19th century works on March 21, the other to modern works on paper on March 22.

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